kiehl



(No Model.)

L. E. KIEHL. HARNESS BUCKLE.

No. 602,508. Patented Apr. 19,1898.

Nrrn STATES LATENT tries.

LOUIS E. KIEHL, OF REEDSVILLE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO F. O. KIEHL, OF SAME PLACE.

HARNESS-BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 602,508, dated. April 19, 1898.

Application filed November 18, 1896. Serial No. 612,637. N modeL) To (all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LOUIS E. KIEHL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Reedsville, in the county of Manitowoc and State of WVisconsin, have invented a new and useful Harness-Buckle, of which the following is a specification.

Myinvention relates to buckles of that class particularly adapted for use in connection with harness and designed to be applied to hip and side straps, bridles,checkreins, traces, and other analogous parts of a harness where it is desirable to connect two straps or to fasten the end of a strap to its body portion to form a loop.

The objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of a buckle applied in the operative position to a hame tug and showing a trace engaged thereby. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the relative positions of the parts when the engaged strap has been backed to effect the quick release thereof. Fig. 3 is a detail view in perspective of the buckle, showing the shield or cap swung back to expose the tongue. Fig. 4: is a longitudinal section of the buckle, showing its members in operative positions. Fig. 5 is a plan view of a cap or shield of modified construction, including side loops. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of abuckle provided with the modified form of cap or shield illustrated in Fig. 5.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

The buckle embodying my invention comprises two cooperating members 1 and 2, the former consisting of a cap or shield provided with an interior concave bearing-surface for cooperation with a convex bearing-surface 3 of the other member. The cap or shield is provided with terminal ears 4, spaced apart a distance equal to the axial width of the convex bearing-surface 3, but pivotally connected, as at 8, with the member 2. This pivotal point is eccentrically located with relation to both convex and concave bearing-surfaces, whereby when the parts are in the position illustrated in Fig. 4 the interval between the contiguous portions of said bearing-surfaces is less than the thickness of the engaged strap, whereas swinging movement of the cap or shield outwardly or in the direction necessary to arrange it, as shown in Fig. 3, brings more remote portions of the bearing-surfaces into opposite positions to provide for passing a strap loosely between the bearing-surfaces. The tongue 7, which is carried by the member 2, projects from the convex bearing-surface 3 in a direction which is radial with relation to the fulcrum 8, and this tongue is of a length less than the interval between the bearingsurfaces when the members of the buckle are in such a position as to arrange the bearingsurfaces at the shortest possible distance. The tongue, besides projecting radially from the convex bearing-surface, is located approximately at that point of the said bearingsurface which is most remote from the fulcrum-point 8 or is closest to the concave bear ing-surface when the buckle members are in their normal or engaging position. (Illustrated in Fig. 4.) This disposition of the parts causes the compression of the strap on the transverse line of the strap-perforation with which the tongue is engaged, and while the compression, and hence condensation of the strap, at this point locks the latter by friction against movement through the buckle it has the further effect of strengthening the strap against any strain applied thereto by the tongue, and hence prevents the tearing out of the perforations by means of the tongue.

The concave bearing-surface is smooth, the only projection from either surface being the tongue, which is carried solely by the convex bearing-surface approximately at the most remote point, or point of greatest eccentricity, and as the most adjacent point of the concave bearing-surface, or that point which is closest to the axis of movement, and hence coacts with said remote point of the convex bearingsurface, is arranged at the rear end of the cap or shield it will be seen that in order to expose the tongue to provide for either engaging or disengaging a strap perforation it is necessary to swing the cap backward to bring its front edge beyond the transverse plane of the tongue, or through an arc apof engagement with the buckle.

proximately equal to the length of the cap or shield.

Obviously the length of the arc through which the cap or shield must be swung to release a strap depends, to a certain extent, upon the length of the cap, or the distance between the most adjacent point of the bearing-surface of said cap and the front edge thereof; but it also depends, in a great measure, upon the point of the convex bearingsurface at which the tongue is located. In the construction illustrated the arrangement of these parts is such that when a strap is clamped by reason of the contiguity of the proximate points of the eccentric bearingsurfaces the tongue is engaged with the strap in the transverse plane of said cooperating portions of the bearing surfaces. Having fixed these relation s between the parts,the longitudinal extent (measured forwardly from the transverse plane of the tongue) of the cap or shield may be regulated to provide for any desired movement of the cap or shield before releasing the strap, provided said longitudinal extension of the cap does not cause a material deflection of the strap at the point Such a deflection is objectionable for the reason that it causes an outward strain upon the cap or shield, or a strain of said part away from the convex member, and hence taxes the pivotal point of connection of said parts unnecessarily.

The convex member of the buckle is provided with an attaching loop or keeper, consisting of a transverse f ulcrum-bar 5 and side arms 6, the interval between the inner surfaces of said side arms being equal to the interval between the inner surfaces of the side ears 4 of the cap or shield. The object of so constructing the members of the buckle as to provide equal intervals between the side arms 0' and the ears 4 is not only to limit the width of the buckle to that which is just sufficient for receiving the strap to be engaged, but also to enable me to construct a hollow convex bearing portion for the member 2, the bearing-surface 3 being segmental, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. In order to utilize the lightness attainable by making the body portion of the member 2 of hollow construction and at the same time secure a proper cooperation between the clamping members, even should there be a tendency of said members to spring or yield in the longitudinal plane of the tongue 7 I arrange the ears constituting the side Walls of the cavity in the member 2 between the planes of the inner surfaces of the ears 4, and hence in the plane of a strap engaged with the buckle, and the outward pressure of the convex member is thus applied to the strap contiguous to the planes of the ears 4, and any tendency of the buckle to warp or yield under pressure applied thereto will be resisted by the fact that said ears 4 are disposed adjacent to the points of greatest pressure of the convex and concave bearing-surfaces upon the strap. While under ordinary circumstances the segmental portion 3 of the convex member will be made of sufficient thickness toresist any pressure applied thereby to the strap, it will be readily seen that pressure can be applied more effectively at points contiguous to the ears 4:, and hence the construction illustrated and described may be utilized even when the buckle is made of such light material as to be insufficient to resist radial pressure applied to the convex bearing-surface in the longitudinal plane of the tongue. Furthermore, it is desirable to apply the most severe clamping action to the strap upon opposite sides of the longitudinal plane of the tongue in order partially, at least, to relieve the strap at said intermediate plane,for the reason that a strap is necessarily weakened to a certain extent by the line of perforations formed therein for the reception of the tongue.

In Figs. 1 and 2 I have shown the buckle applied in the operative position to a hametug 10, a trace or similar strap 11 being engaged by the buckle; but it will be understood that this application of the buckle is only designed to illustrate the functions thereof and that it may be used with equal advantage in connection with the several other straps of aharness. Furthermore, the improved buckle is adapted for personal Wear and may be used in connection with waistbelts and may be constructed of nickel, brass, malleable iron,silver,or other durable or ornamental material. The cap or shield may also be constructed of open-work or perforated or otherwise embellished. In Figs. 5 and 6 I have shown a modified construction of the buckle designed for use in connection with the traces of light harness or where it may be required to have side loops for connection with straps branching from the trace or the main strap. Such side loops are illustrated at 9.

An important advantage of the construction described resides in the facility with which a strap may be disengaged therefrom, and in this connection reference should be had to Fig. 2, illustrating the disengaged positions of the parts. The fulcrum-bar 5 of the convex member forms an axis upon which said member may be turned to occupy a position perpendicular to the direction of strain applied to the buckle in order to throw the tongue forwardly a sufficient distance to clear the cap or shield and at the same time to withdraw said tongue from the perforation of the strap with which it has been engaged. The above-described arrangement of the tongue in a radial position projecting from the most remote point of the convex bearing-surface provides for this withdrawal of the tongue from the strap perforation when, after disengaging the extremity of the strap from the loops or keepers in which it may have been fitted, the engaged strap is backed or moved in the opposite direction to that in which it is strained when in use. It is obvious that when this backing or reverse movement is imparted to the strap the convex member is turned upon its axis 5, while the cap or shield (which is constructed and mounted to swing in the direction in which strain is applied to the strap) is held in its normal position with relation to the strap by the contact of the latter with the front and rear edges of said cap, as shown in Fig. 2. In other words, the cap or shield is held from swinging movement with relation to the strap, while the convex member is swung to a position approximately perpendicular to the strap or perpendicular to the direction of strain to swing the tongue out of operative relation with the cap or shield and simultaneously out of engagement with the strapperforation. When the parts assume the new positions described, the strap is free to be drawn out of the buckle or moved to the desired adjustment, owing to the fact that the then contiguous portions of the convex and concave surfaces are smooth and offer no obstruction to the longitudinal movement of the strap. Hence it will be seen that I have constructed a buckle which by reason of having a smooth-surfaced concave member is adapted to retain its position parallel with the strap after the buckle has been tilted upon the fulcrum-bar 5 as an axis to cause the disengagement of the buckle-tongue from the strap, and when the desired perforation of the strap reaches a point contiguous to the buckle-tongue it is only necessary to press the strap downwardly and forwardly in the direction of operative strain applied to the strap to return the convex member to its normal position and simultaneously cause the engagement of said tongue with the perforation, the cap or shield meanwhile retaining its position parallel with the strap and closing over the tongue to prevent accidental disengagement of the buckle from the strap.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1 A harness-buckle comprising a tongue-bearing member 2, provided with a side bearingsurface, and having a longitudinal keeper including a transverse fulcrum-bar 5 engaged with a strap-loop, whereby the keeper may be tilted to occupy a position perpendicular to the plane of the strap-loop, and a cap 1 pivotally mounted upon the member 2 and having a smooth inner surface spaced from and approximately parallel with the side bearingsurface of said member, the tongue of the member 2 projecting from its bearing-surface in a direction perpendicular to the plane of said keeper, and terminating contiguous to the inner surface of the cap, at a point approximately midway between the ends thereof, substantially as specified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS E. KIEHL.

W'itnesses:

F. O. KIEHL, AMANDA CHRISTIANSEN. 

